USCIS Extends Flexibilities to Certain Applicants Filing Form I-765 for OPT

USCIS announced flexibilities for certain foreign students affected by delayed receipt notices for Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization. These flexibilities apply only to applications received on or after Oct. 1, 2020, through May 1, 2021, inclusive.

USCIS has experienced delays at certain lockboxes in issuing receipt notices for Form I-765 for optional practical training (OPT) for F-1 students. These delays are a result of COVID-19 restrictions, a dramatic increase in filings of certain benefit reque

sts, postal service volume and delays, and other external factors. While we have made progress in addressing the problem, we are extending the following flexibilities to assist certain applicants for OPT impacted by the delays. Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-extends-flexibilities-to-certain-applicants-filing-form-i-765-for-opt

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

USCIS Expands Premium Processing Service to E-3 Petitioners

Starting Feb. 24, 2021, petitioners filing Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, requesting a change or extension of status to E-3 classification will have the option to request premium processing service for their petition. The E-3 classification applies only to nationals of Australia who are coming to the United States solely to perform

services in a specialty occupation.

An Australian national who is outside the United States may apply for an E-3 nonimmigrant visa directly through the Department of State or, in the case of an individual already in the U.S., by filing Form I-129 with USCIS. Read more at: https://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-expands-premium-processing-service-to-e-3-petitioners

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.

ICE removes WWII Nazi concentration camp guard to Germany

WASHINGTON – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) removed a 95-year-old former Nazi concentration camp guard to Germany, Friday.

Friedrich Karl Berger, a German citizen, participated in Nazi-sponsored persecution while serving in 1945 as an armed guard of concentration camp prisoners in the Neuengamme Concentration Camp system (Neuengamme). He was ordered removed from the United States in February 2020. Read more at: https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-removes-wwii-nazi-concentration-camp-guard-germany

Contact Darren Heyman, immigration attorney, for more information.